Guest essay: Balanced solutions needed for Lake Ontario

3:37 PM,
Jul. 26, 2013

Written by

Jim Howe

The International Joint Commission just completed a week of public hearings on its new plan for Lake Ontario water level management. I'd like to respond to a claim I hear often from the plan's critics that those in favor of the long-term health of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River are putting "muskrats and cattails" above property values.

This couldn't be further from the truth and reflects an outdated rallying cry of "environment versus economy" when evidence shows that nature is actually one of the best investments around. Study after study proves that healthy coastal ecosystems are ...